Ilo Decent Work Agenda and Sri Lanka: Teeth for Tiger

Abstract

"Decent Work” is recognized as a normative foundation of the "Right to Work" by the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. International Labour Organization (ILO) identifies the agenda of decent work as a tool involving opportunities for work that are productive, deliver a fair income and other rights at work, and provides social protection and social dialogue with gender equality and the "Decent Work Agenda” can be designated as the sharp set of teeth of the tiger called "Decent Work. The Role of ILO and the standardization of national legal framework have a positive relationship in the arena of labour law. Thus Decent Work Agenda adopted by ILO remains as a standard accepted worldwide in this standardization process of decent work apart from other measures such as Conventions and Recommendations of ILO. As an instrument of good governance the decent work agenda fosters cooperation and economic performance while helping to create an enabling environment for the realization of the objective of Decent Work at the national level. Sri Lanka has reiterated its obligation towards decent work agenda during many international and regional meetings. Moreover the 1978 Second Republican Constitution of Sri Lanka by means of fundamental right to engage in any lawful occupation, profession, trade, business or enterprise and related Constitutional freedoms establishes the foundation to agenda of decent work. On the other hand labour legislation such as Shop and Office Employees Act, Wages Boards Ordinance, Industrial Dispute Act, Employees Provident Fund Act, Employment of Women, Young Persons and Children Act, Maternity Benefits Ordinance, Employment of Females in Mines Act that cover areas of decent work, namely; employment, rights at work, social protection and social dialogue, aspire "Decent Work" within the domestic framework subject to legally prescribed restrains. Thereby the problem of this study was "to what extent Sri Lanka has incorporated international standards of decent work in domestic labour law through substantive and procedural legal principles." Objectives of the research were to evaluate decent work agenda adopted by ILO with that of Sri Lankan legal framework and to suggest recommendations to improve the legal framework of Sri Lanka in line with international standards of the same. The research was carried out based on two methodological approaches; Black letter approach and International and Comparative research methodology. Two methodologies were carried out based on primary and secondary sources. Primary sources include the Constitution, related legislations, case laws and international standards and secondary sources include peer reviewed journal articles, conference proceedings, case commentaries and online articles. The study concluded with the connotation that teeth of tiger can be sharpen through suggestions made in the study which would shape the legal framework based on "decent work" that ultimately avail the employees, employers and the government to maintain "decent work" within Sri Lanka.